Cerddorion s Upcoming Performances Mourning and Evening Tomás Luis de Victoria s exquisite six-part Requiem Mass; Brahms serene and moving Drei Gesänge, Op. 42; and the winner(s) of Cerddorion s inaugural Emerging Composers Competition. C ERDDORION VOCAL ENSEMBLE James John Artistic Director Saturday, March 2, at 8pm The Oratory Church of St. Boniface 109 Willoughby Street, Brooklyn Saturday, March 9, at 8pm St. Patrick s Old Cathedral 263 Mulberry Street, Manhattan PRESENTS Voices for Today: A Celebration of Poulenc and Britten Selected sacred works by Francis Poulenc; Benjamin Britten s Rejoice in the Lamb; and a rare performance of Britten s Voices for Today, composed for the 20th anniversary of the United Nations. With guest artists the Vox Nova Children s Chorus of the Special Music School, Kaufman Center; Emily John, director. Saturday, June 1, at 8pm St. Paul s Episcopal Church 199 Carroll Street, Brooklyn Thursday, June 6, at 8pm St. Ignatius of Antioch 87th Street & West End Avenue, Manhattan ByrdCage Tom Ligon Guest Artist For further information about Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble, please visit our web site: www.cerddorion.org. Follow us on Twitter at @cerddorionnyc. Like us on Facebook. Sunday, November 11, 2012 3 P.M. The Oratory Church of St. Boniface 109 Willoughby Street Brooklyn, New York Sunday, November 18, 2012 3 P.M. Saint Ignatius of Antioch Episcopal Church 552 West End Avenue New York, New York
sopranos Margot Bassett Jude Cobb Anna Harmon Cathy Markoff Jennifer Oates Ellen Schorr CERDDORION altos Susan Glass Linnea Johnson Imani Mosley Myrna Nachman Leonore Nelson Gretta Wren tenors Ralph Bonheim Phil Gallo Frank Kamai Michael Klitsch Alex McCoy Rajan Mudambi Grady Sullivan Support Cerddorion Ticket sales cover only a small portion of our ongoing musical and administrative expenses. If you would like to make a tax-deductible contribution, please send a check (payable to Cerddorion NYC, Inc.) to: Cerddorion NYC, Inc. Post Office Box 946, Village Station New York, NY 10014-0946 BOARD OF DIRECTORS basses Jonathan Miller Michael Plant Dean Rainey Dale Rejtmar Larry Sutter Ethan Wagner Chair Peter Cobb Directors President Michael Klitsch Imani Mosley Treasurer Dean Rainey Ellen Schorr Secretary Gretta Wren Grady Sullivan Larry Sutter The members of Cerddorion are grateful to Doug Keilitz and the Church of Saint Ignatius of Antioch for providing rehearsal and performance space for this season. Special thanks are also due to Emily John for her inspiration and ideas regarding the music of Cage, to Samantha Bassler for her program notes on Byrd, and to Michael Plant for his work formatting the program. Donors Our concerts would not be possible without a great deal of financial assistance. Cerddorion would like to thank the following, who have generously provided financial support for our activities over the past year. Patrons Bruce Bush Peter Cobb Michael Klitsch Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Judy and Rick Markoff The Markoff Living Trust UDT Margaret C. Neville New York City Department of Cultural Affairs New York State Council on the Arts Steven Parkey and Diane Wachtell Nathaniel Polish and Ellen Schorr Laurence B. Sutter Socrates and Evelyn Triantafillou Benefactors Jude Cobb Jeffrey R. and Charlotte Fischman Philip Wayne Gallo Linnea Johnson Priscilla Kauff Phyllis and Del Markoff James K. and Kate B. Parkey Bob Rainier Anita L. Ryan Daniel Shapiro Eliott and Cyndee Socci Friends Woody Anderson and Sharon Kaplan Carol Barker Jane L. Bender Jane and John Brickman Gary Ducoing Gingerbread Manor Bed & Breakfast Wylie C. and Christina G. Hembree Bonnie Hiller Jacqueline A. Jones Elizabeth Litt and Edward Randall Nicole and John Louras Catherine Markoff Glenn Lunden and Frank Meola Myrna Nachman William R. Nye Nancy L. Pasley Eleanor and Joseph Perlman Dean Rainey David K. Schorr and Judith K. Krones Julian and Gail Schorr Barry and Rona Smith Mary-Louise Smith Amy F. J. Stone Nancy M. Tooney Juliet Wachtell Jonathan F. Weil Gretta Wren Richard Yaeger
When questioned about 4 33 at various points in his career, Cage offered these thoughts: Well, I use it constantly in my life experience. No day goes by without my making use of that piece in my life and in my work. I listen to it every day. Yes I do. I don t sit down to do it; I turn my attention toward it. I realize that it s going on continuously. So, more and more, my attention, as now, is on it. More than anything else, it s the source of my enjoyment of life. (Duckworth, William: Talking Music: Conversations with, Philip Glass, Laurie Anderson and Five Generations of American Experimental Composers. Schirmer Books: New York, 1995, p. 14.) But what really pleases me in that silent piece is that it can be played any time, but it only comes alive when you play it. And each time you do it, it is an experience of being very, very much alive. (quoted in For The Birds. Marion Boyers: Boston, 1981.) Four 2 - composed in 1990 for a high school choir in Oregon, this, the only choral work by John Cage is one of the compositions referred to as Number Pieces. The titles indicate the number of performers (Four is for string quartet, 1O1, for 101 orchestral players etc.) The only text, as in ear for EAR is the individual letters from a word, in this case, Oregon. Four 2, is a deceptively easy piece; Cage presents the singers with a series of notes to be sung within certain timings. The effect, one of shifting ephemeral harmonies seems otherworldly, yet the performer s experience is grounded in the practicalities of time, breath and sound. At the same time, in order to achieve a noteworthy performance, one must, as British scholar Tom Service notes, [submit] yourself to a kind of listening, a sensitivity of musical interaction between you and the other performers that requires you to give up your sense of individual identity to Cage s music. (quoted in A Guide to s Music, published in The Guardian, August 13, 2012). This is the paradox of Cage s music; it is complex and simple, abstract and artful. Gamelan R. Murray Schafer (b. 1933) Similar to Cage in his multi-faceted career, Schafer is a philosopher, environmentalist, writer and composer. Schafer is perhaps best known for his concepts of soundscapes (sounds or combination of sounds arising from a specific environment, often related to acoustic ecology) and ear-cleaning (the idea of ridding oneself of preconceived ideas of sound and opening your ears to new ideas). Imitating the sounds of a gamelan (a traditional Javenese ensemble of metallophones, drums, gongs, etc.) Gamelan uses a pentatonic scale and bell-tones (dong, deng, dung, dang, ding). In relation to the music of, Cage himself was entranced with the sound of the Javenese music and his works for prepared piano, particularly Amores and the Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano are often referenced as a prime example of Western composers imitating the traditional sound of Gamelan. Cage also composed a piece, Haikai for a traditional Gamelan, one of the first Western composers to do so. The Program Mass for Five Voices, with selected All Saints Propers William Byrd (c. 1540 1623) Kyrie Gloria Gradual: Timete Dominum (from Gradualia, 1605) Credo Offertory: Justorum Animae (from Gradualia, 1605) Sanctus & Benedictus Agnus Dei Anna Harmon, soprano; Susan Glass, alto Alex McCoy, tenor; Jonathan Miller, bass Intermission Reading from Composition as Process (1912 1992) ear for EAR Living Room Music To Begin Story Once upon a time the world was round and you could go on it around and around." Gertrude Stein Melody End Margot Bassett, James John, Imani Mosley and Michael Plant, percussion 4 33 I. Tacet II. Tacet III. Tacet Reading from Lecture on Nothing Reading from Composition as Process Four 2 Gamelan R. Murray Schafer (b. 1933)
The Artists Now in its eighteenth season, CERDDORION is one of New York s most highly regarded volunteer choral ensembles. A chamber group of twenty-eight mixed voices, it is known for its eclectic repertoire, encompassing music from the Renaissance to the contemporary. Audiences have come to appreciate the group s interpretive depth and technical excellence in many styles. Cerddorion has also frequently commissioned new works by such composers as Paul Moravec, David Schober, Lisa Bielawa, David Lang, Elliot Z. Levine, Robert Dennis, and Julie Dolphin. Besides presenting its own varied programs, Cerddorion is frequently invited to perform with other acclaimed artists. In 2011, the men of Cerddorion sang with esteemed French organist Francis Chapelet in the second inaugural recital of the Manton Memorial Organ at the Church of the Ascension in New York. Past collaborations have included the North American premiere of Sir John Tavener s all-night vigil, The Veil of the Temple, performed at Lincoln Center s Avery Fisher Hall (with Dessoff Choral Consortium and choristers from London s Temple Church); several appearances with the Christopher Caines Dance Company; Baroque opera performances with the early music instrumental ensemble Concert Royal; and serving as the resident teaching ensemble for the Dennis Keene Choral Festival in Kent, Connecticut. In 2006, Cerddorion performed at the Eastern Divisional Convention of the American Choral Directors Association the works they had commissioned from three New York composers for their tenth anniversary season. September 2007 marked the release on the Tzadik label of A Handful of World, Cerddorion s first commercial recording. The CD is dedicated to vocal works by New York composer Lisa Bielawa and includes Cerddorion s performance of Bielawa s Lamentations for a City, which was commissioned and first performed by Cerddorion in 2004. Cerddorion is a proud member of the New York Choral Consortium. JAMES JOHN is in his third season as Artistic Director of the Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble. He is also Associate Professor and Director of Choral Activities at the Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens College-CUNY, where he conducts the Queens College Choir, Vocal Ensemble and Choral Society, teaches choral conducting, and serves as advisor to the graduate program in vocal performance. Recent professional highlights include guest conducting the Tokyo Oratorio Society in a performance of Brahms s Requiem in Tokyo s Suntory Hall, and an invited performance by the Queens College Choir at the 2012 Eastern Division Conference of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) in Providence, Rhode Island. Under Dr. John s leadership the choral program at the Aaron Copland School of Music has become recognized as one of the finest collegiate choral programs in the region. Past performances with the School of Music s choral ensembles include Beethoven s Missa Solemnis, award winning productions of Argento s Postcard from Morocco and Monteverdi s L Orfeo, requiems by Mozart and Verdi, A Night at the Opera with Queens College alumna Erika Sunnegårdh of the Metropolitan Opera, Benjamin Britten s War Requiem, and world premieres of works by Sidney Boquiren, Leo Kraft, Meg Collins Stoop and others. His choirs have performed Living Room Music. Typically performed by a quartet of percussionists, Cerddorion is excited to present Living Room Music in a choral interpretation. Composed in 1940, Living Room Music showcases Cage s affinity for percussion in all its forms. The second movement, which uses a Gertrude Stein text, is similar to the speech quartet Geographical Fugue, by Ernst Toch, which Cage was familiar with. To be performed on any household objects or architectural elements, this work is one of many in Cage s oeuvre that breaks down the barrier between sound and music, between performance and life. 4 33. This work scarcely needs an introduction; to many it is. And yet, to most people, it is merely a jest. A recent New Yorker cartoon depicted the Carolers, who stood, dressed in winter attire, holding music, mouths closed. For those who dislike art music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, 4 33 is often Article A in the judgment and condemnation of music of the avant-garde. Articles have been written, jokes have been made, and yet, the piece endures. Kyle Gann s recent book No Such Thing as Silence: s 4 33 provides a detailed history, analysis, and discussion that is worth exploring for a more in-depth understanding. It is interesting that Cage did not limit the piece to four minutes and thirty-three seconds. He allowed for any length of time, for each of the three movements. In his writings and versions of the score, it is clear that the timing is not set. The 4 33 time came from the premiere, by pianist David Tudor. The length of each movement was predetermined through chance operations, and thus many people choose to honor the timing of the premiere. However, it is not the length of time that is important. Many people, scholars, and audience members have tried to figure out the best approach for listening to this piece. Some focus on the philosophical questions raised, while other listen to the ambient sounds present in the performance space. Here are some suggested thoughts to inspire your listening: In 2010, a group of British rock and pop stars joined forces to record 4 33 partly as a protest. They wanted to oust the contender for the number one album on the holiday pop charts (the recent winner of a talent-contest show, similar to American Idol) and refocus music away from extreme commercialization. All proceeds from this effort were donated to charity. The following statement, read to the artists prior to the recording session, provides a wonderful context for Cage s work as we approach it in 2012, sixty years after its premiere: Our campaign started as something of a joke, and that s how a lot of people see 4 33, but the truth is that thought very long and hard before composing it, and had some genuine ideas behind the piece. Anybody who tells you that it s the emperor s new clothes doesn t know what they are talking about. Your experience today is about being in the here and now, and as musicians and creative people you will all understand that music is made up of more than just formal notes and arrangements. Here today, we are doing something special, we are stopping and appreciating the space between things, the unintentional sounds that make up our world. I now invite you to honour s legacy for our culture, bring your individual meanings to 4 33, and enjoy the next 4 minutes and 33 seconds together.
Music and Writings of Notes by Emily John (1912 1992) is most often associated with his seminal work, 4 33, but his contribution to music is much greater than the curiosity and analysis of the so-called Silent Piece. The innovations in his music, from chance methods of composition to the concept of the prepared piano, have greatly shifted the musical landscape. Yes, Cage s use of silence is legendary and has certainly altered the discussion of music by raising the question What is music?, but Cage is truly a composer, not merely an innovator or creative thinker. His works range from the large-scale Atlas Eclipticalis and the wide-ranging Song Books to small and intimate works, such as Litany for a Whale. Famous for his prepared piano music (Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano, Amores), in which objects such as bolts, screws, and bits of rubber are inserted between the strings of the piano, creating different timbres for each note, Cage s compositions are vast and varied. Some of his vocal music is virtuosic, as in Aria, originally written for Cathy Berberian, while other songs are simple, but accompanied by complex and dissonant harmonies. Though famed for his use of chance methods (consulting the I Ching, rolling dice, etc.), none of the works on today s program were composed through chance operations. The readings featured today are excerpts from Cage s writings and lectures. Cage s philosophical ideas range from deeply profound to offbeat, almost surrealist comedy. On closer examination, his writings, much like his music, reveal simple truths and profound questions. Cage s influence on the art, music, and philosophy of the twentieth century is enormous. Through his connections with artists as diverse as John Lennon, Arnold Schoenberg, e.e. cummings, Pierre Boulez, and Merce Cunningham, his legacy is exceptionally broad and deeply profound. Underneath his music lies a rich appreciation of humanity, and in his best pieces, this love of people comes through. May Cage s philosophy, his music, and his words inspire you: It is essential that we be convinced of the goodness of human nature and we must act as though people are good. We have no reason to think that they are bad. ear for EAR. Composed in 1983 for the tenth anniversary of EAR magazine (a modern music publication, no longer in print), this antiphonal piece brings to mind the monody or chant of the early church. Cage indicates that this work is to be performed by widely separated single voices, one visible, the other(s) not, which leaves the performer to determine the number of voices and the placement of singers in the performance space. Virtually textless, using only the letters E, A, R, ear for EAR invites the listener to listen, perhaps in a new way. This piece is reminiscent of the line from e.e. cummings s poem, i thank you God for most this amazing day (now the ears of my ears awake/now the eyes of my eyes are opened). May you enjoy the awakening! in many of New York s prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Weill Recital Hall, St. Patrick s Cathedral and Trinity Church Wall Street. Under his direction the Queens College Vocal Ensemble recently released its first CD, featuring premiere recordings of partsongs by Scottish composer Hamish MacCunn, and the Queens College Choir recorded Bright Sheng s Two Folksongs from Qinghai, soon to be released on the Naxos label. Dr. John s guest conducting appearances include Avery Fisher Hall s annual Messiah Sing-In, a concert of American choral music with the Virginia Chorale (Virginia s only professional choral ensemble), chorus master for the Queens Symphony, regional honor choirs throughout New York State, and a recording with jazz trumpeter Michael Mossman. He has given presentations at both divisional and national conventions of the ACDA, and is in demand as a clinician and adjudicator throughout the United States. Dr. John will return to Tokyo in 2013 to conduct Beethoven s Missa Solemnis. As a teacher and scholar, Dr. John has served as Guest Lecturer in conducting at the Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg, Germany, and presented seminars on American choral music in Basel and Stockholm. His dissertation on Brahms s Nänie, Op. 82 won the Julius Herford Prize from the ACDA and will be published soon in revised form as a book by The Edwin Mellen Press. His articles have appeared in Choral Journal, American Choral Review, and Chorus America s Research Memorandum Series. In July 2011, he was appointed Editor of American Choral Review, and also serves as a member of ACDA s National Research and Publications Committee. Dr. John received his Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting from the Eastman School of Music. Prior to his current position at the Aaron Copland School of Music, he served as Director of Choral Activities at Tufts University in Boston, Director of Choral Activities at Nassau Community College in Garden City, NY, and as Dartmouth College s first Conducting Fellow. He received his Master of Arts in Conducting from the Aaron Copland School of Music. Guest artist TOM LIGON has performed professionally in theater, film, and television for fifty years. He has worked on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in many regional theaters across the country. For Transport Group, in New York City, he has appeared in Our Town, Requiem for William, The Audience, and All the Way Home. He was featured as Alvin Yood in the last three seasons of HBO s Oz. His youth is forever preserved in the Paramount film Paint Your Wagon and in Bang the Drum Slowly. A veteran of several daytime serials, he played Lucas Prentiss on The Young and the Restless. He is a graduate of Yale University.
A note from the Artistic Director: Program Notes and Texts ByrdCage The concept for today s program grew out of a desire to honor in his centennial year. William Byrd s three Mass settings have also long been among my favorite works and when the title ByrdCage struck me like a bolt from the blue, I could not resist creating a program that paired the music of these two wonderful composers. Though it might not seem like they have much in common, both Byrd and Cage were innovators who were in some sense at odds with their times. As a Catholic in Protestant England, Byrd wrote all of his Mass settings in secret, under the potential threat of persecution. As such, they are extremely heartfelt and contain a passionate spirit that is uniquely personal. The Mass for Five Voices is the third and last setting, and for me partly due to the distinctive feature of two tenor parts, as well as the elegance of Byrd s counterpoint it stands out as exceptionally beautiful. Choirs do not often take on the music of, mostly because he wrote only one specifically choral work (Four 2 ). Several of his vocal works, however, can be interpreted chorally by using groups of singers rather than solo voices. I have chosen two of these (ear for EAR and Living Room Music), and paired them with excerpts from Cage s thought-provoking and delightful writings, as well as with his iconic Silent Piece (4 33 ). We may not fear these silences, we may love them, Cage wrote. Chance operations (rolling dice, tossing coins, etc.) play a significant role in many of the composer s works, and as part of our tribute, we have determined the order of the Cage selections on the second half of the program by using chance processes. As Cage said, chance operations are not mysterious sources of the right answer. They are a means of locating a single one among a multiplicity of answers, and, at the same time, of freeing the ego from its taste and memory, its concern for profit and power, of silencing the ego so that the rest of the world has a chance to enter into the ego s own experience whether that be outside or inside. It is my hope that Cage s music will offer you new ways to listen, to approach silence, and even to view the world. James John Justorum Animae (Wisdom 3: 1-2a, 3b) Justorum animae in manu Dei sunt, Et non tanget illos tormentum mortis. Visi sunt oculis insipientium mori, Illi autem sunt in pace. Sanctus Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth. Pleni sunt cæli et terra gloria tua Osanna in excelsis. Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini. Osanna in excelsis. Agnus Dei Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem. The souls of the just are in the hand of God, And the torment of death shall not touch them. In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die, But they are in peace. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts. Heaven and earth are full of thy glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, grant us peace.
Credo Credo in unum Deum; Patrem omnipotentem, factorem coeli et terrae, visibilium omnium et invisibilium. Et in unum Dominum Jesum Christum, Filium Dei unigenitum, Et ex Patre natum ante omnia sæcula. Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine, Deum verum de Deo vero, Genitum non factum, consubstantialem Patri: per quem omnia facta sunt. Qui propter nos homines, et propter nostram salutem descendit de coelis. Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto ex Maria Virgine: et homo factus est. Crucifixus etiam pro nobis sub Pontio Pilato, passus et sepultus est. Et resurrexit tertia die secundum Scripturas. Et ascendit in coelum: sedet ad dexteram Patris. Et iterum venturus est cum gloria, judicare vivos et mortuos: cujus regni non erit finis. Et in Spiritum Sanctum, Dominum, et vivificantem: qui ex Patre Filioque procedit. Qui cum Patre et Filio simul adoratur et conglorificatur: qui locutus est per Prophetas. Et in unam sanctam Catholicam et Apostolicam Ecclesiam. Confiteor unum baptisma, in remissionem peccatorum. Et expecto resurrectionem mortuorum et vitam venturi sæculi. Amen I believe in one God; the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ,the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, light of light, true God of true God, begotten not made; being of one substance with the Father, by Whom all things were made. Who for us men and for our salvation descended from heaven; and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost, of the Virgin Mary, and was made man. He was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, He died and was buried. And on the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures: and ascended into heaven. He sitteth at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; and His kingdom shall have no end. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and giver of life, Who prodeedeth from the Father and the Son, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who has spoken through the Prophets. And I believe in one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism, for the remission of sins. And I await the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen. William Byrd: Mass for Five Voices (ca 1594) Timete Dominum and Justorum Animae, from the Gradualia I (1605) Notes by Samantha Bassler William Byrd (ca. 1543 d1623) is famously known by scholars as a man of contradictions: he was a lifelong Catholic who wrote music for the Roman Catholic Church, in spite of the Protestant patrons whom he served, including the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I. Indeed, at the time Byrd s masses and Gradualia were printed, England had been Protestant for over sixty years. Even so, Byrd persisted in his traditionalism and his Catholicism, living under a succession of five monarchs, even as Catholics and radical Protestants were martyred for their religious beliefs. It was a dangerous time to be a Catholic, indeed, but the culture of the English Reformation too was marked by contradiction: While Elizabeth I defended the Protestant faith of her father, she also tolerated the performance of music with Latin texts in the Chapel Royal (an ecclesiastical department of the monarch s household). Byrd s publishing of his Masses for three, four, and five parts between 1592 and 1595 and Gradualia books I and II in 1605 and 1607 roughly coincides with when Byrd left his post at the Chapel Royal (in 1593) for the village Stondon Massey. There, in Essex, was a small community of Catholics who would have benefited from, and greatly appreciated, functional music for their religious observances, since the majority of Reformation England was not a welcoming or profitable environment for these Catholic publications. Byrd and his fellow Catholics planned to publish a cycle of liturgical Catholic music, featuring the principal feasts from the Church calendar, and the masses and Gradualia were part of this effort. Byrd was able to publish heretical Catholic music because he shared the printing monopoly with his teacher Thomas Tallis: In 1575, Elizabeth I gave them the sole privilege of printing music, and they were able to use this monopoly to publish music that served even their subversive Catholic interests. It is noteworthy that Byrd s masses were unconventional musically as well as culturally and politically. As scholar William Mahrt demonstrates, this is the first Mass Ordinary written in England in thirty years. Unlike other English composers, Byrd s masses are freely-composed, so they do not include systematically borrowed musical elements, which Mahrt insists benefits Byrd s more direct and simple setting of the text and is also a break with tradition. Additionally, Byrd sets the entire Mass text, unlike most English composers, who infrequently set the Kyrie and usually omit substantial portions of the Credo text. As Mahrt demonstrates, the text setting is delineated, succinct, and expressive, moreso than masses with systematic use of borrowed material. The rhythmic expression of the text in Byrd s masses exemplifies his careful settings: Much of the mass texts are syllabic settings, usually one note per syllable, so the words of the mass are easy to understand. The beginning of the Gloria is a good example, with its syllabic setting of the words Laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te in each voice. Even in the Kyrie, a movement with very repetitive words, the melisma does not obscure the setting, and there is pervasive syllabic treatment. Most impressive is the Credo, with its extensive text, set syllabically and with little melisma. Mahrt argues that since Byrd composed the Mass for Five Voices last, it is the pinnacle of Byrd s Mass composition, and in it is a more refined and experienced setting of text and Mass style. Indeed, the counterpoint here has potential for more complexity, and the alteration between
imitation and homophony is more dramatic, especially when switching textures between sections for one to three voices, and then back to all five voices again. Yet Byrd s style in the Masses is mostly of alternating sections of fewer parts, and the full five voices singing together is reserved for especially poignant sections in the text. The late Philip Brett contends that Byrd s musical style in the Masses and in the Gradualia is different than in his other sacred Latin works, because in this project he sought to maintain liturgical decorum while supporting the cause of the subversive Jesuits, and therefore found more subtle methods of communicating political messages. This was necessary partly because toward the end of the sixteenth century, the English monarchy became less moderate in their dealings with recusants like the Jesuits, the term for those who refused to attend Anglican services during the English Reformation. In 1593, Elizabeth I instigated An Act for Restraining Popish Recusants, which introduced stricter policies against those who refused to give up their Catholic faith. Like the masses, the Gradualia were written for performances at small, intimate locations, rather than at large Gothic cathedrals. Musicologist Kerry McCarthy argues convincingly that the Gradualia is intimately connected to the Roman Catholic Church calendar and various ritual liturgical celebrations; it is a collection of propers for the major feasts of the liturgical year and is an example of music for the Catholic Counter-Reformation and the English Catholic community. While the psalms of the Cantiones sacrae motets that Byrd published in 1575, 1589, and 1591 can be interpreted as political and Catholic charged texts, they have no specific liturgical function within any church tradition. The Gradualia, on the other hand, are written for specific Catholic feasts and liturgy. The volumes begin with anthems to the Blessed Virgin Mary, written in a style that is anachronistic by the time of their publication in 1605, yet they represent Byrd s magnum opus. The motets Timete Dominum and Justorum Animae are a Gradual and Alleluia, and an Offertory, respectively, for the Feast of All Saints. Both are from the first Gradualia book and are scored for five voices. Timete Dominum is a meditative, imitative counterpoint setting that complements the text and exhibits Byrd s excellent skills in text setting, especially at the words for labor (laboratis) and burden (onerati), which are worked out with complex and heavy or burdened imitative counterpoint and melisma. Similarly, the setting of Justorum Animae also fits the text, with a homophonic setting in a calm and measured idiom that reflects the words of Wisdom, which tell of the peaceful rest of God s faithful, in solace and safely away from torment. The homophonic setting then gives way to measured imitation, which sets the words for in the sight of the unwise they seemed to die; but [the souls of the just] are in peace. The motet is a calm reassurance that no matter what the social atmosphere for Catholics such as Byrd and his peers in the English Reformation, if they remain faithful, even during their present turmoil and persecution, they will eventually be at peace. Kyrie Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison, Kyrie eleison, Gloria Gloria in excelsis Deo, Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis. Laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te, glorificamus te. Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. Domine Deus, Rex cælestis, Deus Pater omnipotens. Domine, Fili unigenite, Jesu Christe. Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. Qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Qui tollis peccata mundi, suscipe depracationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, miserere nobis. Quoniam tu solus sanctus. Tu solus Dominus. Tu solus altissimus, Jesu Christe. Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris, Amen. Timete Dominum (Psalm 33: 9 10; Matthew 11:28) Timete Dominum omnes sancti ejus: Quoniam nihil deest timentibus eum. Inquirentes autem Dominum, Non deficient omni bono, alleluia. Venite ad me omnes qui laboratis, Et onerati estis: et ego reficiam vos, alleluia. Lord, have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord, have mercy. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to all those of good will. We praise thee, we bless thee, We adore thee, we glorify thee. We give thanks to thee for thy great glory. Lord God, Heavenly King, God the Father almighty. Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father. Thou, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Thou, who takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Thou, who sittest at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For Thou alone art holy. Thou alone art Lord. Thou alone art most high, Jesus Christ. With the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father, Amen. Fear the Lord, all ye his saints: For there is no lack to them that fear him. They that seek the Lord shall not be deprived of any good. Alleluia. Come to me all you that labor and are burdened, And I will refresh you. Alleluia.